You, a tyrannical ruler, roam the heavens; you cannot understand my joy.

Outside Nantong city.

The undulating mountains were clearly outlined by the sunlight, and the distant lake shimmered with golden light.

In the open field, a gentle breeze rustles the wild grass, making a soft sound.

"Miss Xie, what grudge do you hold against Du Wen?"

Lu Zuo walked slowly through the grass and glanced at Xie Guyan beside him.

His attempt to persuade them to stay, though puzzling to everyone, hinted at something.

In addition, Xie Guyan was indeed physically weak, so they agreed to let him stay in Nantong for one night.

After her injuries had subsided and she had eaten two bowls of rice porridge, the girl suggested that she go for a trip outside the city.

Lu Zuo had nothing to do, and since Chu Yunlong and the others had also arrived, he went out with them. They bought some paper money and incense on the street and arrived outside Nantong City.

Xie Guyan paused for a moment, then said in a low voice, "He killed my whole family."

"well……"

She sighed softly and said, "What a pity, years of hard work have all come to nothing."

"The revenge for my parents, the revenge for my little sister... I can never avenge them in this lifetime..."

"Ha, those people even talk about turning over a new leaf, about prodigal sons returning home, saying he's undergone trials of blood and fire and has been reborn..."

"He's changed completely, he's turned over a new leaf, but who will pay for my family's lives?"

Lu Zuo frowned slightly: "Are you going to pay your respects to them?"

Xie Guyan nodded: "I will be leaving Nantong tomorrow, and I may never come back in this lifetime."

"Before you leave, go and see them..."

"Young Master Lu, do you know what that bastard Du Wen has done?"

Lu Zuo shook his head. He had heard that this person bullied men and women, was arrogant and domineering, and only after being sent to the army did he change his ways and become a leading figure among the younger generation in Nantong.

However, the specifics of the past remain unclear.

"Du Wen..."

Xie Guyan took a deep breath and slowly said, "He was once a notorious playboy in Nantong, known for his arrogant, absurd, and domineering behavior, most of all..."

She paused for a moment, then added, "I especially love watching children fight dogs."

"What is meant by children fighting dogs?" Lu Zuo asked.

Xie Guyan: "It means locking children in cages and having them fight with vicious dogs."

"My younger sister was only nine years old that year... She went to the city with her mother to buy floral fabric, and was spotted by that beast Du Wen, who then ordered his men to forcibly abduct her."

"When my mother returned home crying, my father grabbed a hoe and rushed out."

"But when I saw Father and Little Sister again..."

"My little sister was torn to shreds by Du Wen's hunting dog, and my father... had all his bones shattered."

She slowly narrowed her eyes, and the scene from that day flashed through her mind again.

Its tiny body was curled up in a ball, and there wasn't a single good spot on its body; it was covered in blood and gore!

The pale neck bone protruded sharply, still attached to a piece of tender flesh...

"That tiny little person was bitten to death, and even in his dying moments he was clutching that piece of floral fabric that his mother had saved up for over half a year to buy."

"My parents doted on me, and every New Year they would buy me new cloth and make me new clothes, while my little sister always wore my hand-me-downs..."

At this point, she suddenly laughed: "That girl is incredibly clever; she's been competing with me since she was four years old."

"But every time, my father would scold me, and after being scolded, I would hide in the corner and cry."

"I went to comfort her, saying that when her older sister grows up and earns money, she will definitely give her lots and lots of new clothes and delicious food..."

"My father died from the pain, and my mother went insane after seeing my younger sister's body."

"As for me, a girl who is only twelve years old, I can only wander the streets and beg for a living."

"Several years later..."

"That guy transformed from a universally despised playboy, a disgrace to aristocratic families, into a hero they praised and sang about, a model of a prodigal son's return..."

"Yes, he has stopped causing trouble."

"But what about me?"

"Where are my family members?"

Lu Zuo took a deep breath and slowly exhaled: "In the eyes of those who praise him, many people are not worthy of being called 'human beings'."

"And then?"

"How did Miss Xie acquire such skills?"

Xie Guyan: "I met Senior Brother Wei, who brought me back to the Path of the God of War. After that... it's just a matter of enduring hardship and cultivating. Once I achieve something, I'll come back to take revenge..."

"Oh."

"Who would have thought that scoundrel had actually touched the threshold of the Innate Realm?"

"We couldn't avenge our loss, and several of our fellow disciples even perished at his hands. Perhaps... this is the fate of lowly people like us?"

"Hehe..." She shook her head and gave a bitter laugh. "Enduring hardship, training hard, bleeding, sweating... it's all just wishful thinking."

"How can ants possibly contend with nobles?"

Lu Zuo didn't speak, and walked with him in silence. After they had walked for a while, Xie Guyan suddenly stopped, her eyes wide open, staring intently ahead!

Following her gaze, Lu Zuo saw two pits at the foot of the mountain not far away.

Judging from the color of the soil around the edges, it must have been dug up recently.

His gaze slowly shifted, sweeping across the area to the side.

suddenly!

Lu Zuo's eyes suddenly sharpened!

A small, rotten wooden sign came into his view.

The writing on the wooden sign was blurred and illegible, but it was still faintly legible: Aimei, Xie's youngest daughter...

On the other side, there was a wooden sign that had been trampled to pieces, and it was impossible to make out what was written on it, but Lu Zuo could guess what it meant without even looking...

"Thank you, Miss Xie."

"I'm fine..."

Xie Guyan's gaze was unusually calm. She slowly walked forward and picked up Xie Xiaomei's wooden plaque.

He picked up the crushed fragments one by one, then tore off his coat and carefully wrapped the wooden sign and fragments layer by layer, holding them in his arms.

A gust of autumn wind swept across the ground, causing the surrounding grass to rustle and bend low, and also blowing the stray strands of hair that fell across her cheeks.

"Even if you fight to the death, you still can't get revenge. Crying, shouting, raging, and all that..."

A bitter smile tugged at the corner of her lips: "What's the use?"

As she spoke, Xie Guyan put down the paper money and incense, lit them with a tinderbox, then knelt on the ground and kowtowed three times to the two pits in the ground. Blood seeping from her forehead clung to a few pieces of grass.

Lu Zuo stood aside, quietly watching her kowtow, burn paper money, and pay respects to her relatives. He didn't move or say a word, but his gaze grew sharper and sharper!

……

"Young master."

A short while later, as the last piece of paper money turned to ashes, a deep male voice suddenly came from behind.

Lu Zuo turned around and saw that Chu Yunlong had appeared there at some point.

He was so focused, and because he didn't exude any killing intent, it was only when the other person got within a three-zhang radius that they became aware of him.

Lu Zuo stepped forward and asked in a deep voice, "How many people have come?"

"I have gathered friends I have made in the past during this period, but there are not many who meet your requirements, only sixty-seven people."

"Young master, should we...?"

Before Chu Yunlong could finish speaking, Lu Zuo waved his hand to interrupt him: "Do not make any rash moves. Stay where you are and wait for my instructions."

"Yes."

Chu Yunlong responded and turned to leave.

"Young Master Lu..."

"Who exactly are you?"

Only after Chu Yunlong had walked far away did Xie Guyan, who had been watching the two the whole time, finally speak up and ask a question.

"Let's go."

"Let's go back first."

"After you return, follow the pen of someone whose mental illness has slightly improved, and embark on an adventure together in 'Wandering the Heavens as a Tyrant, You Don't Understand My Joy.' You'll find out then..."

……

It was evening.

In the courtyard where Lu Zuo lived in the city.

"Senior Brother Wei, what did Young Master Lu mean by that?"

Gu Tingyun sat on the stone platform under the eaves, looking at Wei Hanjiang beside her.

"Who knows..."

Wei Hanjiang shook his head: "But I have a feeling that this Young Master Lu is probably someone with a lot of background, and not as simple as he seems on the surface."

"What do you mean...?"

Zhong Rou's eyes suddenly lit up: "Does what he said mean he'll kill Du Wen to avenge Junior Sister Xie and his fellow disciples?"

"impossible."

Without hesitation, Wei Hanjiang immediately rejected her: "Du Wen has already reached the threshold of innate ability."

"With his talent and the Du family's wealth, it won't be long before they overcome this hurdle."

"And Du Mingli, as the Prefect of Nantong, comes from a prominent local family. His family's scholarship, his influence, plus the martial arts masters and soldiers under his command..."

"Such a massive force..."

"How will Young Master Lu kill him, and how will he confront him?"

"Besides, what reason would they have to help us again and again?"

"Whether it's him or us, in the eyes of the Du family, we're nothing more than a few stronger ants."

"What's the point of talking about revenge?"

Bang!

A muffled thud suddenly rang out, and the two vermilion gates of the courtyard creaked open, immediately breaking off their connection with the frame and hurtling towards the crowd!

The group's expressions changed drastically, and they scattered to avoid the impact of the gate.

Clang!

As soon as the three landed in different parts of the courtyard, the two vermilion doors slammed against the wall of the main hall with a dull thud, then scattered into a pile of broken wood.

"Capture these traitors!"

A loud shout rang out, and several figures flew across the courtyard, their long swords aimed at Wei Hanjiang and the others.

"Senior brother, senior sister, catch!"

Upon hearing the commotion, Shi Yu and Zhou Quan rushed out of the hall with their weapons, fending off the attacking warriors while throwing their weapons to Wei Hanjiang and the others.

With their weapons in hand, the group didn't hesitate for a moment before charging forward to fight the attackers.

For a time, the sounds of metal clashing echoed throughout the courtyard, accompanied by the howling and roaring of fists and feet.

Wei Hanjiang forced his opponent back with a single strike, and glanced outside the door, a chill running down his spine!

"It's over..."

Outside the courtyard, there were hundreds of elite armored soldiers, completely surrounding the courtyard.

And that Du Wen…

He stood at the door, coldly watching the group.

……

Meanwhile, inside the prefectural governor's residence.

The heads of prominent families, major figures, and officials at all levels from Nantong gathered here for a grand banquet.

"Lord Du, where is your young master?"

A richly dressed man looked at Du Mingli beside him and asked.

"hehe……"

Du Mingli chuckled: "That kid went to catch a few traitors."

"Oh?"

"What kind of traitor?"

"Do you need any help from the Zhou family?"

Du Mingli waved his hand: "They're just a few petty thieves, no need to trouble Brother Zhou."

"It is said... that my son made some enemies when he was being naughty back then."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Cheng's eyes darkened, and he coldly snorted, "Young Master Du is no longer the same as before; he has reformed himself, yet those guys still keep causing him trouble?"

"Absolutely despicable!"

"Indeed," another person said, "How many assassination attempts has Young Master Du survived in the past six months?"

"They've already turned over a new leaf, why are you still clinging to them?"

"Amitabha……"

A high-ranking monk present chanted Buddhist mantras and said, "Lay down the butcher's knife and become a Buddha on the spot."

"Those traitors repeatedly make things difficult for others, harping on every little mistake they made in the past; how vicious their hearts are!"

……

Meanwhile, on the street.

"Lin Yue!"

A clear shout stopped Lin Yue, who was leading her men in a search.

She turned around and saw Jiang Che striding towards her from a distance, saying in a deep voice, "Are you really planning to serve Du Wen?"

"Chief镖头 (Chief Escort)"

Lin Yue pondered for a moment and said, "For us, from humble backgrounds, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."

"In the past, has Young Master Du ever given us even a second glance?"

"Now that he has taken the initiative to extend an olive branch, how can we refuse when we want to revive our family?"

Jiang Che pulled her aside, avoiding the other students from humble backgrounds, grabbed her shoulders, and lowered his voice: "But do you know why he wants to recruit you?"

Who is Du Wen?

"He is ruthless, vicious, domineering, and arrogant. Although he has changed his nature in recent years, his inherent arrogance remains!"

"Just as you said, no matter how much you tried to please him in the past, he never even glanced at you."

"But now they're putting on an act of humility and recruiting students from humble backgrounds..."

"I'm afraid... what he wants you to do will cost you your heads!"

*Smack!*

Lin Yue pushed Jiang Che's arm away: "Chief镖头, Lin Yue's mind is made up, so please don't try to persuade me anymore."

"In short..."

"No matter what, I'm going to climb up!"

"If my Lin family falls any further, we'll be reduced to lowly commoners like Lu Zuo!"

Lin Yue turned around and pointed to the people sitting against the wall and under the eaves: "I don't want my family to one day become as filthy, vile, ignorant, and numb as they are!"

"It's disgusting that it's become like this!"

you……!

It's impossible to reason with that damned fool!

Since she had made this decision, Jiang Che said nothing more, flicked his sleeve, and turned to leave.

……

Meanwhile, on the other side...

"Young Master Lu, your disguise skills are truly exquisite?"

After entering the city, the decisive battle was about to begin, and Lu Zuo no longer needed to disguise himself, so he reverted to his original appearance.

Seeing that he had changed his face shape and bone structure by simply pressing a few acupoints, Xie Guyan couldn't help but feel a little surprised.

"Lu Zuo?"

Just as he was about to reply, he suddenly heard a woman's voice beside him.

Looking up, I saw Lin Yue carrying a long sword, leading several martial artists as she strode towards me from a distance.

She first glanced at Lu Zuo, then fixed her gaze on Xie Guyan.

Lin Yue stopped, her eyes narrowing slightly. With a clang, she drew her longsword, the blade pointing directly at Xie Guyan: "Take off your veil!"

"What gives you the right?"

Lu Zuoheng stood in front of Xie Guyan and asked.

"Just because I recognize her figure!"

"She was one of the traitors who assassinated Young Master Du!"

"snort!"

"I really don't know what you traitors are thinking?"

"How could you bring yourself to harm such a good person as Young Master Du?"

What did you say?

Lu Zuo's eyes were icy cold as he stared intently at Lin Yue.

He initially just felt disgust and aversion towards this woman.

just now……

A murderous intent sprouted from the depths of his heart!